National Security Advisor (NSA) M K Narayanan today said that the Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Harkat-ul-Jehad-I-Islami are part of Al Qaeda’s “elite terrorist network” along with groups in Central and East Asia.

Speaking at the annual Munich Security Conference, Narayanan said this “intricate web” of terror groups now have common resource structures.

“Al Qaeda’s elite terrorist network such as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan and Islamic Jehad Group (in Central Asia), the Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi and Harkat-ul-Jehadi Islami and the Taliban (in South Asia), the Jemiah Islamiah and the Abu Sayyaf Group in South East and East Asia represents an intricate web of terrorist networks. They have forged common funding structures, common training curricula and have a common resource for obtaining explosives and weapons” the NSA said.

Without naming any particular country, Narayanan said there are “credible reports” suggesting that this region is also the source and destination for proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) making the situation a “cause of concern”. “Threats to stability from nuclear weapons in the hands of volatile states cannot be discounted,” Narayanan said.

On the Al Qaeda, the NSA said its aims are political rather than religious and the driving force behind the network is the power of ideas and the changing character of its leadership. “Today, the Al Qaeda’s mindset, even more than the Al Qaeda network, provides the most pervasive threat to Asian and international stability,” he said.

At the same conference last year, Narayanan spoke of terror outfits manipulating the Indian stock markets to raise funds. The NSA called for a Pan-Asian security architecture, different from the alliances of the Cold War era, to deal with modern day challenges, many of which, he said, emanate from non-state actors.

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